Barcelona residents usually cross Plaza de Catalunya in a hurry, but this Saturday many people found a good reason to stop. The third edition of Festival of Ideas and Culture (FIC) of elDiario.es has brought together thousands of people in the center of the Catalan capital, including hundreds of members of elDiario.es, to demand free journalism, explore the current challenges of the world and also have a good time with a dose of humor and music.
From the Gaza War to the ongoing struggle and the time it takes to recognize the truth; from the challenges of today's journalism to the new stories that teach us to 'think strong'. And the writer Margaret Adwood, who has confessed to the FIC audience which books she reads, as a big star. All this enlivened by Marc Giró as master of ceremonies and with the humor of Bob Pop, the most beautiful ruins (including those of Gemma Nierga), an unforgettable show by Juan Diego Botto and Nur Levi, and the concerts of Sidonie and Júlia Colom on Friday and the sessions, on Saturday, by DJs Oro Jondo and Nòvies.
“The information should be for the readers and not for the algorithm,” said the director of elDiario.es, Ignacio Escolar, at the table about the challenges of today's journalism. who opened the day on Saturday behind the Friday meeting with members. School and director The vanguardJordi Juan; the director of the Macaw, Esther Vera; and former director of The country Soledad Gallego Díaz, have emphasized the importance of member and subscriber communities in ensuring editorial independence and coping with pressure.
Atwood, in conversation with the deputy director of elDiario.esMaría Ramírez has discussed the raw material of her literature, which in many cases coincides with current events: women's rights, the more than possible re-election of Donald Trump in the US or the rise of totalitarianism. But there has also been time to detail the books the author is reading, her views on old age or her future publications: she has announced that she is preparing a memoir that will be published in the autumn of 2025.
In times when telling the truth carries a risk, the table 'El Rincón de Pensar', the philosophy and thinking section of elDiario.esanalyzed the truth in the public sphere with thinkers Remedios Zafra and Santiago Alba Rico and the director of the CCCB, Judit Carrera. From the table, moderated by the deputy director of elDiario.es, Neus Tomàs, came the demand for a 'resistance movement' against the technological mediators who falsely present themselves as neutral.
The FIC's Saturday morning programme is completed by the comedian Bob Pop with his monologue from his most personal diary, 'Symmetrical days', in which he looks back on the time he has lived since he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Just before lunch time, Javier and Sergio Torres, better known as the Torres Brothers, performed on stage at Plaza Catalunya their culinary skills in a gastronomic battle with a Catalan accent, where the cod 'esqueixada' competes against the 'recap' coca.
The elDiario.es podcast, 'A topic a day', has also had a place at the FIC. Deputy director Juanlu Sánchez and journalist Olga Rodríguez explained the current situation of the Gaza war, with the shocking testimony of Kayed Hamad, a translator living in the Gaza Strip. “Today we are on day 262 of this damned war that cannot be called a war because it is a genocide, the destruction has reached everything”, he denounced.
Sánchez and Rodríguez opened the FIC afternoon program dedicated to podcasts, including 'Carne Cruda' by Javier Gallego and Violeta Múñoz and 'La Ruina' with Ignasi Taltavull and Tomàs Fuentes, with the participation of Gemma Nierga and her demise during a gynecological visitFor their part, Gallego and Muñoz, led by Santi Balmes, Begoña Gómez Urzáiz, Andrea Gumes, La Prados and Raquel Hervás, have thought “hard” and have come to a conclusion: “Less therapy and more burning containers.”
With a smile thanks to La Ruina and with the hair on end after the performance of Botto and Levi in 'And one Morning Everything was Burning', the FIC has looked forward to the end of the party by DJs Oro Jondo and Nòvies to celebrate a day to dance for a long time in which Barcelona residents will remember stopping for hours and filling Plaza Catalunya.